8 August 2011

Up until the past few weeks summer seemed to have alluded us here in the valley. The motto "Welcome to the sunny Okanagan" that has tourists from all over the province and Alberta flocking to our beaches and sun-dappled vineyards seemed to be a thing of the past. With temperatures rising the past few weeks the balance of nature has been restored and our fruit stands and farmers markets are laden with the bountiful harvest of the season, beaches are crowded with sun worshippers and thrill seekers, and the wine is flowing in vineyard restaurants and tasting rooms. My wish is that the late start to summer just means that winter will be slow in arriving as well!

With summers return there is nothing more refreshing on a sweltering, hot summer day than an ice-cold popsicle. Homemade fruit pops and creamsicles are a great way to use up all the juicy, sweet fruits that are currently available at our local farmers’ markets and fruit stands and perhaps even over ripened on your kitchen counter. These summer treats are beyond simple to make. All you need is a blender, some molds and some creativity. And if you don’t have popsicle molds, you can use short plastic or disposable cups and popsicle sticks.

Popsicle is a generic name we use for these frozen treats but it is actually a trademarked name. As the story goes in 1905, in my favourite city San Francisco, 11-year-old Frank Epperson was mixing powdered flavouring for soda and water out on his porch. He left it there overnight with the stirring stick still in the glass. That night, temperatures reached a record low, and the next morning, the boy discovered the drink had frozen to the stick, inspiring the idea of a fruit-flavoured 'Popsicle'. Eighteen years later, Epperson introduced frozen pop on a stick to the public at an amusement park. He applied for a patent for a "frozen ice on a stick" called the Epsicle ice pop, which his children renamed the "Popsicle" and the rest is history. This "Pop" had a hit!

Kids and "kids at heart" will love making homemade pops. Mom will also be happy that instead of eating the artificially coloured, high-fructose pops found in your supermarket freezer, your "kids" will even prefer popsicles made from nutritious, locally-grown fruits.

Stone fruits, such as peaches, nectarines, apricots, and plums, work well. So do local berries and melons. I was inspired by this recipe from Paula of Dragons Kitchen who made a Blueberry Basil Sorbet that had me swooning. When visiting Toronto the smallest taste had me hooked on this special flavour where fresh herbs play a key role in creating a tantalizing dessert. It will serve me well to always remember that herbs can add an interesting twist to classic fruit flavors. Sorbet was not in the cards, but I do remember seeing a popsicle with basil infused for an added layer of flavour. Popsicles it was!!

If you have more fruit double and triple up!!! The basil is a subtle flavour that adds a slightly peppery note on the tongue to balance the full flavour of the blackberries. It is not so pronounced that the kids will notice. The only difficult thing about making these frozen treats is waiting for them to freeze before you can eat them!

Back to The Future.....

Over four years of blogging I have found many wonderful recipes to share on these pages. Some from my own kitchen, some from your creative blogs and web sites, and some from well known celebrities and chefs. I have been feeling a little nostalgic and was browsing these very pages just the other day, creeping back to the very beginning in 2006 when More Than Burnt Toast was in it's infancy and no more than "knee high to grasshopper". We all have those stellar recipes from when we first started when we were lucky enough to find one comment and have maybe one reader; in my case even before I was taking photos of the dishes I prepared. My other motivation for reconnecting with the past is to create uniform formatting on this blog and this is a fun way for me to revisit past posts.

So here are a couple of flashback recipes from the very first baby steps here at MTBT with...

1. Bring the blackberries, honey, basil, vanilla and orange or lemon juice to a simmer in a medium sauce pan. Simmer on low heat for approximately 5-8 minutes, or until blackberries are very soft or bubbly.

2. Push the blackberry mixture through a fine mesh sieve and discard seeds. Chill the berry puree in the refrigerator until cooled.

3. Stir the yogurt into the blackberry mixture until combined. Pour the puree into molds and freeze for at least 8 hours, or overnight. To remove the popsicles from the molds, run some warm water over the outside of the mold until you can gently pull/wriggle the popsicle out.

4. Note: You can also use Greek vanilla yogurt and omit the vanilla extract.

Makes 5-6 (2 oz) popsicles

You are reading this post on More Than Burnt Toast at http://morethanburnttoast.blogspot.com. Excerpts and links may be used, provided that full and clear credit is given to the author and or owner of More Than Burnt Toast. All rights reserved by Valerie Harrison.

Just one comment: vanilla is nearly always added off heat. High heat kills the flavor. Baking is no problem, because in an oven the vanilla isn't in direct contact with the heat source. But even on a simmer, it's safer to mix everything but the vanilla, take the pan off burner, and then stir in the vanilla.

Unless of course you don't want a pronounced vanilla flavour. Vanilla extracts have an alcohol base so a quick cook over the stove eliminates this. The vanilla was a subtle background flavour and not totally necessary. It is better to substitute Greek vanilla yogurt.

Your summer sounds like ours was last year, but this year it's been lovely! I hope you're right and that your winter is delayed in coming. Lovely pops -- I love the flavor combo in them. I've been meaning to try some lately thinking it would be much better for my husband and I than sipping another glass of wine in the evenings. Dessert!

i need to do more like you and work with others' recipes! so many wonderful creations... i love the basil in this... and even better b/c it's in a popsicle! Have you ever heard of Jeni's ice creams? I just had some of her push-ups and oh my word, they were amazing... yum!

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My blog More Than Burnt Toast has been my passion for almost 9 years and has evolved with me over time as I have gained confidence in the kitchen. Follow my travels through Italy and Greece one recipe at a time, upcoming cooking classes at local Okanagan wineries and restaurants, as well as daily experimentation in my own kitchen. Every day we should be excited about what we are eating even if it just means making use of a wonderful find at our local farmers market. I look forward to getting to know you.